Certain cases call for your lawyer to look at not just first hand accounts, but also physical evidence. Greg Stokes explains the reasoning behind this in one example case:

A number of years ago, there was a police shooting here in DeKalb county, Georgia. And it involved a teenager–he had a fight with his mom, he locked himself in his room, she called 911. And three police officers came, and they went into the room, and he was sitting in his closet. And of course he was very, very scared by the police officers. And while he was sitting there, the police officers started to shine a flashlight in his face. He picked up a stick, a ruler, and he threw it at the officers. In return, the officers fired 5 shots. Three of them hit him. One in each knee, and one in his low back. The police officers, all three of them, said he lunged out of the closet, they thought he had a knife and they were protecting themselves.

So we had three police officers on one side, and sixteen-year-old on the other side. Who were we going to believe? Well, the county took the approach that they were going to side with the police officers. As it turned out, this case turned into a major federal civil rights case. And we took the lead on it. We brought in the deputy coroner from Los Angeles to reconstruct the injury and to see where this young man was seated when he was shot.

The CSI person came to the house, inspected the closet, looked at the bullet holes in the closet and the floor of the closet. Then she compared it to the x-rays. And what did the x-rays show? The x-rays showed that one shot went through one knee, another shot went through the other knee, and another shot went through the low back. She was able to animate the reconstruction, and she was able to show that in order for those shots to enter the body that way, the young man had to be seated in the closet with his knees up. That’s why the bullets went through the front of the knee to the back of the knee. Then the bullet to the low back came about, which was bullet #5, as the young man was falling the bullet went into his low back and stayed there permanently. Well, the one thing I didn’t tell you is, this injury was so severe, they had to amputate one of this young man’s legs.

We brought this case in federal court within one week of trial. We showed the animation. We showed what evidence we were going to present–the physical evidence from the CSI versus the three police officers– and the county decided they didn’t want to go to trial, they wanted to get it settled.

What did we learn from this? Sometimes you can’t go with just the witnesses’ testimony. Sometimes, the injury lawyer has to go deeper and look at the physical evidence and bring in experts to develop that evidence.

If you’ve been in an accident in Georgia and find yourself in need of a lawyer or just some advice, please give us a call toll-free, any time of day at 1-800-700-5050, or fill out our free, online case evaluation form here.

America’s fascination with CSI has left us all with a dramatized idea of how accidents work out. The fact of the matter is that, while most real life cases aren’t as “juicy” as those we see on TV, their physical evidence is looked at by your lawyer with the same caution and interest as on the hit crime shows. While piecing together the details of your case, your lawyer will consider all the evidence in depth and with a trained and perceptive eye. As he or she sorts out all of this information, your lawyer can also use your evidence to inspire the use of expert witnesses that could help your case if it were to go to trial, and just to get a good idea of what you will be facing in the long term.

In certain cases, the physical evidence of a case can provide a take on the events of your accident or personal injury case that witness testimonies just can’t. The physical facts can be interpreted by an expert witness–or somebody who’s called in by your lawyer who is an expert on the science behind your case–to strengthen a jury’s idea of exactly what happened on the day of your accident.

If you or a loved one has been in an accident, or you are simply looking for legal help, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 1-800-700-5050, or to use our free, online case evaluation form here.

What Can I Expect in Terms of Legal Help?

As we’ve learned, litigation can be very tricky. But with the right help on your side, it can really work. So litigation isn’t anything to be afraid of, it’s all part of the process of getting you the reward you deserve.

If you’re concerned about finding the right attorney after your accident in Georgia, or simply want to share your story at no cost, please don’t hesitate to call us at (800) 700-5050, or to fill out our Free Online Case Evaluation form.

Why if I’ve had a Wreck in Georgia I need to know about a “contingency fee”

If your attorney agrees to handle your case on a “contingency fee basis”, he or she is basically agreeing to wait to be paid until you get your settlement. Simply put: he doesn’t get paid until you get paid. At the beginning of your professional relationship, you and your attorney will work out a percentage of your settlement he or she will receive if you win. That’s right–if you don’t get your settlement, you don’t pay a cent.

What about other fees involved in my case?

Putting together a personal injury case can rack up some serious charges–hiring expert witnesses et cetera can be a significant investment on your lawyer’s behalf. But there’s no need to worry–if we decide to help you with your case, we are willing to shoulder the costs and invest in the positive outcome of your case. We work tirelessly to make sure you and your family receive the settlement you deserve, so there’s no need for you to worry about fees aside from the agreed contingency fee.

Moral of the story?

If you’re worried about paying an attorney for your personal injury or wrongful death case, don’t! We are here to help you get the settlement you deserve to make up for the damages you have suffered.

So if you’re thinking about getting an experienced Georgia personal injury attorney on your side, or would just like a free case evaluation, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 800-700-5050, or click here for our online evaluation form.

The Difference Is Vision with Accidents At Night

We all know, especially those of us that are getting older, that there’s a change in our vision from day to night. What’s important to know about this is that certain colors either stand out at night or blend into the darkness. And if you’re in an accident at night, the color of the car you hit matters in your case. For example, the color red can appear black at night before your headlights approach it. Sometimes, in order to get a settlement in a night driving case, it’s important to get an expert witness involved in the vision issues of a case.

So if you’ve been involved in a night driving accident, or are thinking about getting an experienced Georgia personal injury attorney on your side for anything else, or would just like a free case evaluation, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 800-700-5050, or click here for a free case evaluation.

1. Don’t blame yourself if you’re in an accident.
   At the scene of the accident, don’t tell anybody that it’s your fault. Part of the point of getting a lawyer after an accident is to figure out who’s to blame. Aside from protecting yourself and your lawyer from extra trouble, you can also spare yourself from feeling guilty.
2. Seek immediate medical treatment.
   Not only is important to be looked at by a doctor for your health, it will also be important for your injury case to have documented injuries. So don’t hesitate to get checked out at a hospital!
3. Never give a recorded statement to any insurance company. If you give a statement, chances are it will be used against you. There is no requirement to give a recorded statement–especially not to the other driver’s insurance company. They’re always going to ask for it and there’s no benefit to giving it to them.
4. Never sign any releases without your attorney present.
5. Same goes for checks: Don’t sign any without your attorney looking at them first!

So if you’re thinking about getting an experienced Georgia personal injury attorney on your side, or would just like a free case evaluation, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 800-700-5050, or click here for a free case evaluation.

We had worked on a case where the mother of six children was killed at night and her two children were seriously injured. She was driving over a hill, and as she was coming over the hill there was a truck that was backing into the highway. This truck was a large tractor-trailer truck. Th color of the truck was red, the sides of the truck were fabric because the fabric could be rolled up so deliveries could be taken out of the sides of the truck. Unfortunately, as our client came over the hill, in the black of night, that truck did not look red, but it looked black. And she did not see it in time.

By the time her headlights revealed to her there was a truck, her car had slid into the side of the truck and killed her and hurt the two children. Because the trucking company took the position that “it was her fault, she should have avoided it, she had plenty of time to see it”, what we did was we flew up to New Jersey and we hired an expert witness who was an expert in conspicuity. This is an expert in night vision and how the eye sees things differently at night. And he had a little experiment he did with the students in his class–he had them cover one eye and then cover the other eye. And he showed them black and he would show them red.

Well, when you uncovered an eye, that had been blindfolded, and you had the lights off, and the eye was not used to seeing any light, when the students would look at the red square it would appear black.

We went to mediation on the case and we weren’t able to get it settled. We had it set down for trial, they took the deposition of the night-vision expert and they were convinced they were going to lose. By bringing in an expert on night vision, we were able to get the case settled where it should have settled.

So if you’ve been involved in a night driving accident, or are thinking about getting an experienced Georgia personal injury attorney on your side for anything else, or would just like a free case evaluation, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 800-700-5050, or click here for a free case evaluation.

We believe if your case is worth handling on a contingency fee basis, it is worth the investment by us to pay the expenses of litigation as we go work on the case. Let me give you an example.

A number of years ago, there was a very, very serious police shooting in Athens, Georgia. And I felt very, very strongly about it–I felt that the police department was wrong in what they did, this young man died, and I decided, even though it was a small, southern town, I was going to take on the establishment.

Well the case went on for a pretty long period of time. We took over fifty depositions, we brought in a deputy coroner from L.A. to reconstruct this shooting, and I invested close to $150,000 in front expenses to make this case work. I can tell you that we went to two separate mediations, one mandated by the federal court. The case did not settle.

We went to a second mediation a week before the trial. The case did not settle. But I can tell you–at each mediation, we were able to present very, very valuable and compelling facts that we were going to win and even these folks in Athens, Georgia that made up the jury were going to be on our side and were going to award a substantial verdict to the children of these young men.

Well I can still remember it–it was Friday afternoon, and the trial date was Monday. And throughout that Friday as we were working on the case and getting it ready for trial, we kept on talking about settlement negotiations. We went back and forth. And we were able to get the case settled, and we were able to get these kids taken care of.

So if you’re thinking about getting an experienced Georgia personal injury attorney on your side, or would just like a free case evaluation, please don’t hesitate to call us any time of day at 800-700-5050, or click here for a free case evaluation.

Why It’s Best to Hire A Lawyer at the Beginning

If you hire an experienced personal injury attorney at the beginning of your case, you are much more likely to get not just better treatment in how your settlement turns out, but from your lawyer as well. After your accident in Georgia, it’s extremely important that your lawyer have the opportunity to process all the facts about your case as soon as possible, so that he or she can fight on your behalf from the start.

Legal Help after a Car Wreck

So let’s say you do hire a lawyer. What next? He or she can give you advice on what you can do, and the rest can be handled for you. Since experienced personal injury lawyers speak the “lingo” of insurance companies, they can sort out the mess that often results after an accident.

Rest Easy with a Georgia Injury Lawyer on Your Side

Everyone on our team at Stokes and Kopitsky has your best interests at heart. We’ll work tirelessly to provide you with excellent service and any legal help you may need. In fact, our phone lines have 24-hour answering any day of the week at 1 (800) 700-5050. Or, if you’d rather receive free consultation about your case online, you can use our free online consultation form. We wish you the best of luck in your injury case, and hope you’ll use our resources to ensure the best outcome for you and your family.

Liability in Georgia Accident Cases

Well, to start, what is liability? Basically, it means you can point to a person or a product or a situation that has caused an injury. The catch is, there has to have been some negligence: there might have been an oversight, or somebody forgot to do something. And this negligence led to your injury. After an accident in Georgia, there will have to be liability in order to build a personal injury case.

Injury!

Obviously, in order to have a personal injury case, you’re going to have to have a serious injury–but how serious is “serious”? The injury has to be something you’ve been to the emergency room for. But not just to the emergency room, your injury must be serious enough to be treated right away by a doctor with the result of medical bills. Simply put: the bigger the injury, the bigger your claim.

The Importance of Insurance

Even if you think the other driver or party involved in your accident doesn’t have insurance, you can still collect compensation from a lot of different sources. There are plenty of options, including uninsured motorist insurance or even the insurance on your own car.

If you have any questions about these 3 facts, or have been in an accident in Georgia, please give us a call at 1 (800) 700-5050. Also, you’re welcome to use our online form for a free case evaluation. We want to help with your recovery!